Cork pistol



G. MARTIN Dec. 25, 1951 CORK PISTOL Filed Feb. 3, 1949 Q a f l BY GAYLE MARHN AM, M M

ATTO RNLYS Patented Dec. 25, 1951 1 *UNlTED STATES. PATENT OFFICE CORK PISTOL Gayle Martin, Milwaukee, Wis.

Application February 3, 1949, Serial No. 74,445

Claims.

- This invention relates to a cork pistol. It is the primary object of the invention to provide a novel and improved cork popgun construction in which the cylinder handle and trigger guard are of two-piece plastic construc tion having integral dowel and socket means for connecting them together and providing without bolts screws or the like for the mounting or the trigger, trigger spring, plunger release and plunger.

Since the improvements are concerned with specific details of construction, they will-best be understood by reference to the following disclosure of the invention.

In the drawings:'

Fig. 1 is a view partially in side elevation but largely in vertical section through a device embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a view taken in transverse section on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary detail view in perspective showing the trigger, trigger spring, plunger release and plunger.

Fig. 4 is a view in front end elevation of the component molded parts which are assembled in the completion of the gun.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the respective molded parts priorto assembly.

vThe gun, which preferably takes the form of ajpistol, comprises a gun barrel 6 having apistol grip handle at l and atrigger guard at 8. The gun' barrel comprises a' cylinder within which there is operable a piston 9 comprising suitable conventional packing held by head washers ill at the end of the plunger I I. Seated against the head washers and against the inner end of the cylinder is a compression spring l2 which develops suflicient air pressure ahead of the piston when the plunger is released so that ultimately the cork I3 is ejected with considerable force.

At the rear of the gun barrel ways or bearings are provided at M and l5 for the guidance of the plunger. The rear end of the plunger has a handle knob at [6. Intermediate its ends the plunger is relieved at H to provide a shoulder at l8 which may be engaged by the plunger release plate !9 to hold the plunger in its retracted position pending manipulation of the trigger 20. The detent plate is is normally held in its lowered position as shown in Fig. 1 by means of the trigger spring 2!, such spring comprising, preferably, initially fiat bit of clockspring connected at its forward end portion 22 with the upper margin of the trigger and having an intermediate portion 23 bent upwardly to engage the 2 gun barrel or other convenient'stop, the extreme end portion 24 of the spring being engaged with the trigger guard or other stop opposed to the gun barrel. A spring thus made requires no anchorage but floats within the confined space in which it is located, biasing the trigger to oscillate clockwise as viewed in Fig. 1 about the trigger pintle 25. The finger 26 at the rear end of the trigger is engaged through an aperture in plate l9 to draw the plate downwardly in response to the bias of the trigger spring. When the operators finger is inserted through the trigger guard and used to manipulate the trigger in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Figs.

1 and 3, the detent plate [9 is raised, thereby freeing the shoulder l8 of the plunger H and allowing the spring l2 to force the piston forwardly, thereby compressing air and ejecting the cork.

The barrel and the trigger spring chamber and the handle 1 are desirably molded in two parts which are united along a median plane, as clearly shown in Figs. 4 and 5. These parts not only are complementary to each other in the sense that one is "right and the other left. In addition, each part comprises features which the other does not have. For exam le, the molded part 28 which is shown at the left in Fig. 4 and at the left in Fig. 5, carries the forward sight 29 on the gun barrel, and also provides the trigger guard 8 to which reference has already been made. To assure that the gun barrel will be airtight throughout its length, the part 28 has grooves 3| and 32 along the opposite margins of the semi-tubular barrel portion 65, while the part 3fl'has complementary ribs at 33, 34, along the margins of its semi-tubular barrel portion 68. The part 28 is provided with dowels at 25 35, 35, 31, 38 and 39 for which the part 30 has complementary sockets at 40, 4|, 42, 43, 44 and 45 respectively.

The respective parts together provide the guideways at M and I5 for the plunger II and the transverse ways for the detent plate l9. Together the parts also provide cavities which, in the assembled gun, constitute the trigger spring chamber 46 beneath the barrel.

To assure proper alignment of the parts and to preclude separation of the component halves of the gun barrel, I have found it important to locate the dowels and their complementary sockets substantially at the precise points indicated, the dowel 35 being beneath the forward portions of the barrel and the dowel 25, which also serves in the instant device as the trigger pintle, being located beneath the rear portion of the barrel. The dowel 39 is at the extreme rear end of the gun beneath the barrel while the dowels 31 and 38 are centrally disposed in the lower end of the handle grip 1.

The component molded parts are assembled to each other with cement after the plunger, the piston with the piston spring, the detent plate Is, the trigger ill-and zthe itrigger spring :2 .l havebeen deposited lmone of the .parts toxbe confinediby. the other. The cement used is preferably a solvent for the plastic so that, instead of being merely cemented together, the parts become, in effect, fused integrally as indicated by the lack ofany parting line in Fig. 2. The dowels and ribsare: desirably located exactly as shown and, being coated with the solvent, interlock each partw-ith the other in addition to guiding the parts into perfect registry during assembly.

, Theresultinggunis "strong and light and the lbarrekand other parts are "free; ofxwarpin'g'which .hasbeen ioundto 'occur where any attempt is made to bolt "or screw plastic parts to .ieach other. 'fThemanner in which thetrigger spring 'i's'formed andicor'ifined, and .the .manner in which the' trigger' .is jpivotedlupon one .of the dowels,"makes it .unnecessary'to use metal bolts ors'crews even 'for fithe mountingo'f theseparts. "I claim:

lwA popgun having a. .compartmented interior .comprising'the combination with a cylinder bar- .riel, or aihandle in integral connection therewith and including "laterally spaced walls providing tardiacenttsaid .barr'e'l a trigger. .and trigger spring :bhamber said barrel and chamber having .a .comroon ldividing w'aill,,,pintle :mean's. spanning .said chamber; below the" barrel, .,a.. trigger. pivoted on said pintle means, and a spring in impositive connection with ..said.. chamber having. portion enga ing. achatnber wallremote fromthe dividling .wall, another.;portion engaging the trigger for. theebiasing' thereof andlf'a bend intermediate itsendsiengaged withzthe dividing wall, a plunger reciprocable. the..barrel,--a spring urging said plunger-outwardly inathe barrelra detent Jfor confining-said;plungersinza position rearwardlyof :the barrel, .andla connection I-romthe (trigger to said :detent ior biasingthedeten-t toward plunger confining positionvsubject to the thrust of said trigger spring. 2.'. A popgun comprising integrally s-"a barrel cylindeiaand handle, .the handle being hollowrand providing a trigger and trigger spring chamber points disposed respectively at and-intermediate its'ends, said spring being engaged at one of said points with the trigger and the other two points with opposed wall portions of the chamber, a

plunger reciprocable in the barrel and having a -"shoulder engageable with said detent slide, the

slide-having an opening through which said plunger passes, a spring confined within the I handle about the plunger, a piston head against which-said spring is seated, said head including means in substantially airtight engagement within the barrel, and a handle at the end of said plungeroutside ofsaid barrel for'retracting 'sald 'plungeragainst the compression of the spring.

' 3. 'The device ofcla'im 2 in which the cylinder barrel and handle comprise two prefabricated 'side'portions integrally united upon acommon median plane, one of said portions being pro- 1 vided with dowel pins integral therewith and the other having sockets within which said pins are engaged.

4. The device of claim 2 in which three or said dowel pins are beneath the'barrel at points spaced longitudinally thereof and two more are located in the handle below said chamber, one o'f'sa'id three dowel pins providing the "trigger fulcrum aforesaid. 4 p I 5.Thedevice-of"claim lin which'only one of said prefabricated portions integrally. provides a trigger guard. v

beneath-the barrel, a detent slidedisposed transverselyaof .wthe barreldamdwextendingsinto said chamber, ..-said barrel being, provided with ways in which the slide is. reciprocable. atrigger pro- REFERJEhTCES CITED The following referencesare of recordinthe file of this, patent:

UNITED STATES"PATENTS Number Name :Date

304,654 King sept; 2, 1884 603,549 Bailey et al May'3,l8 98 632,005 Bowen 'Aug. 29, 1899 723,227 -Anthony Mar. 24, 1903 768,028 Braun Aug. 23, 1904 1,178,268 Schmidt Apri4, 1916 1,441,975 Edelin -l. Jan. 9, i923 1,448,995 McCollo'm Ap'r. 1, i934 2,055,097 "Eccles et a1 Sept. 2 2, .1936 2,399,333 Desmond Apr.'30,"i94'6 

